Project summary/Abstract Stroke is the fifth leading cause of death and the leading cause of disability among Americans and developing effective treatments for stroke remains a pressing need. The Experimental Stroke Core (ESC) is an essential core for the West Virginia University (WVU) Stroke CoBRE that provides unique expertise and develops novel tools and stroke animal models to enhance the effectiveness of stroke researchers. The overall goal for the ESC is to provide the expertise, training, instrumentation, and resources for the incorporation of animal models of stroke into the research of junior investigators participating in the WVU Stroke CoBRE and researchers in the greater WVU neuroscience and cardiovascular research community. The four proposed specific aims of the ESC will help advance the WVU Stroke CoBRE to a Center of Excellence and, thereby, achieve sustainability after CoBRE funding ends. Aim 1: To provide the expertise, instrumentation and resources to produce strokes in rodent models. Aim 2: To provide processes by which users can access the ESC expertise and resources. Aim 3: To provide mentoring and training in experimental stroke research. Aim 4: To develop new animal models and implement a sustainability business plan for the Experimental Stroke Core. Achieving these specific aims will provide a highly functioning ESC for the research community and bridge a transition of CoBRE- supported-ESC to an independent core facility.